Bridging the personal and the political: practices for a liberation psychology

In the Irish context, legacies of colonialism, the Northern Ireland conflict situation, and the strength of community and women's liberation movements all provide rich resources for understanding the processes involved in both oppression and liberation. This paper draws on the theoretical and research literature and on Irish experiences to develop an understanding of some of the processes and practices that aid in liberation. The research is grounded in diverse writings on oppression and liberation, which include writings on colonialism (E. Duran &B. Duran, 1995; F. Fanon, 1967; V. Kenny, 1985, L. Maracle, 1996), feminist psychology (J. B. Miller, 1986; S. Wilkinson, 1996), liberation psychology (H. A. Bulhan, 1985; L. Comas-Díaz, M. B. Lykes, & R. D. Alarcon, 1998; I. Martín-Baró, 1994; Starhawk, 1987), and psychological aspects of racism (b. hooks, 1993; A. Mama, 1995; R. J. Watts, D. M. Griffith, & J. Abdul-Adil, 1999), homophobia (A. R. D'Augelli & C. J. Patterson, 1995), poverty (K. O'Neill, 1992), and other dimensions of oppression.     

Rejection Sensitivity and the Rejection–Hostility Link in Romantic Relationships

ABSTRACT Rejection sensitivity is the disposition to anxiously expect, readily perceive, and intensely react to rejection. In response to perceived social exclusion, highly rejection sensitive people react with increased hostile feelings toward others and are more likely to show reactive aggression than less rejection sensitive people in the same situation. This paper summarizes work on rejection sensitivity that has provided evidence for the link between anxious expectations of rejection and hostility after rejection. We review evidence that rejection sensitivity functions as a defensive motivational system. Thus, we link rejection sensitivity to attentional and perceptual processes that underlie the processing of social information. A range of experimental and diary studies shows that perceiving rejection triggers hostility and aggressive behavior in rejection sensitive people. We review studies that show that this hostility and reactive aggression can perpetuate a vicious cycle by eliciting rejection from those who rejection sensitive people value most. Finally, we summarize recent work suggesting that this cycle can be interrupted with generalized self-regulatory skills and the experience of positive, supportive relationships.     

Does Roush show that evidence should be probable?

This paper critically analyzes Sherrilyn Roush’s (Tracking truth: knowledge, evidence and science, 2005) definition of evidence and especially her powerful defence that in the ideal, a claim should be probable to be evidence for anything. We suggest that Roush treats not one sense of ‘evidence’ but three: relevance, leveraging and grounds for knowledge; and that different parts of her argument fare differently with respect to different senses. For relevance, we argue that probable evidence is sufficient but not necessary for Roush’s own two criteria of evidence to be met. With respect to grounds for knowledge, we agree that high probability evidence is indeed ideal for the central reason Roush gives: When believing a hypothesis on the basis of e it is desirable that e be probable. But we maintain that her further argument that Bayesians need probable evidence to warrant the method they recommend for belief revision rests on a mistaken interpretation of Bayesian conditionalization. Moreover, we argue that attempts to reconcile Roush’s arguments with Bayesianism fail. For leveraging, which we agree is a matter of great importance, the requirement that evidence be probable suffices for leveraging to the probability of the hypothesis if either one of Roush’s two criteria for evidence are met. Insisting on both then seems excessive. To finish, we show how evidence, as Roush defines it, can fail to track the hypothesis. This can remedied by adding a requirement that evidence be probable, suggesting another rationale for taking probable evidence as ideal—but only for a grounds-for-knowledge sense of evidence.     

Learning to Live with OCD: Labeling,the Self,and Stigma

Researchers have long questioned relationships among self-conceptions, “mental illness,” and stigma. This article looks at these issues through the lens of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), as minimal research has focused on the lived experience of OCD. We examine the impact of OCD on constructions of identity and the management/resistance of stigma. We do this through in-depth interviews with an untraditional Internet-based sample. We find respondents experience a crisis of self that leads them to a variety of strategies to deal with self-stigma, experienced stigma, and anticipated stigma.     

Religious homophobia: The experiences of a sample of lesbian,gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Ireland

This paper presents the findings of an interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) of the experiences of religious homophobia among a sample of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in Ireland. In-depth interviews were conducted with 10 LGBT-identified people in Dublin (age range early 20s to 50s; six male and four female), of whom five identified as religious and five as atheist. IPA generated the overarching theme of Religious Homophobia which was experienced and responded to differently by religious and atheist participants. Findings were that, while participants lived in an increasingly pluralistic Irish society, the negative dividend of religious homophobia created intrapsychic tension for participants and led some to abandon religion altogether. Nevertheless the experiences of participants point to the changing nature of Irish society which is characterised by increased diversity, openness and respect for minority rights including LGBT rights.     

Cork Older Adult Intervention Project: Outcomes of a gestalt therapy group with older adults

The study investigated the effects of a gestalt therapy group with older adults. A total of 43 adults, 65 years or older, were randomised into treatment and assessment control groups of 22 and 21 respectively. ANCOVA results indicated that group therapy participants reported less anger control and more overall expression of anger than the control participants. In addition, they were significantly more agreeable and less hostile and more clear-headed and less confused at the end of the group. These findings were supported by reported emotional changes. Younger group participants were significantly more composed and less anxious than younger control group members. Qualitative results further illustrated this reduction in anxiety. Participants significantly increased their level of clear-headedness and were less confused. Qualitative evidence also illustrated their clear-headedness and agreeableness. Exploratory analysis illustrated substantial learning about oneself by group participants.     

On-line brain stimulation: Measurement of threshold of reinforcement

This program and interface for a small computer (PDP8/e) performs the following operations: generates and delivers constant current stimulation to the brain of an animal, monitors electrical resistance at the stimulating electrode, and calculates the threshold of reinforcement based upon the frequency of characteristic pauses in the animal’s responding.     

Psychological Factors that Link Socioeconomic Status to Depression/Anxiety in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Our analyses examined whether reserve capacity factors would explain the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and symptoms of depression/anxiety in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We assessed disease activity, depression/anxiety symptoms, and intrapersonal and interpersonal reserve capacity measures in 128 patients with SLE. Multiple meditational analyses revealed that intrapersonal and interpersonal psychosocial aspects of reserve capacity fully mediated the relationship between SES and depression/anxiety. Lower SES was indirectly associated with higher symptoms of depression and anxiety through the effects of psychosocial resilience. Interventions aimed at improving modifiable reserve capacity variables, such as self-esteem and optimism, may improve anxious/depressive symptomatology in patients with SLE.